Personal Profile

Full Name

Donna Howard

Age

63

Race

White

Occupation

Community Advocate

Education

B.A., University of Texas at Austin; M.A., University of Texas at Austin

Spouse:

Derek

Donna Howard is the representative of Texas’ House District 48. Howard is serving as the vice chair of the Higher Education Committee, and sits on the House Administration Committee and Appropriations Committee and Subcommittee on Article III. She previously served as vice chair of the House Culture, Recreation, and Tourism Committee and as a member of the House Technology Committee.

Howard legislative focus includes public health and public education, environmental protection and historic preservation. Howard has been honored by community and state organizations, from the Austin Business Journal and the Texas Hospital Association to the Texas Parent-Teacher Association, the Sierra Club and the Heritage Society of Austin. She also has been recognized as a Distinguished Alumna of both The University of Texas School of Nursing and The University of Texas Department of Kinesiology and Health Education.

She worked as a critical care nurse at Brackenridge and Seton hospitals, was the first hospital-based Patient Education Coordinator in Austin, and helped start the Seton Good Health School. She has also served as president of the Texas Nurses’ Association (District 5) and as a Health Education instructor at UT.

A recognized expert on public education, Howard was elected to the Eanes ISD board in West Austin, where she served from 1996 to 1999 and was certified as a Master School Trustee by the Texas Association of School Boards. She co-founded the parent organization Advocates for Eanes Schools and helped form the Texas Education Crisis Coalition, a grassroots group of parents, business owners and community leaders working together to tackle the public school finance issue.

Howard is a native of Austin who graduated from Reagan High School, then went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in nursing and a master’s in health education, both from the University of Texas.

Howard has previously served on the boards of Austin Area Interreligious Ministries, Common Cause, the Texas Freedom Network and the Texas Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. She is currently a board member of the Expanding Horizons Foundation, supporting low-income housing and education.

Married to Austin attorney Derek Howard, she is the mother of three adult children and is active in her neighborhood and church communities.

Information in this bio was provided by Howard's office.Last updated: March 19, 2015.